And So It Begins...

I love starting a new year. I also enjoy turning my calendar at the end of each month. It's on to new things in both cases. Sure, we do bring some of the old baggage along with us but we look to the horizon ahead and consider what we can do in this next twelve months.

Goals

It's a time to consider what our goals for this year will be. Some writers set goals on a regular basis. They like to keep a list and check each one that comes to fruition. Others have a mental list. Still more never set any goals at all. Should they? I think setting a few goals for ourself is like getting a nudge each time we see the list. It helps to spur us on, to inspire us. 

If you don't accomplish every goal you set, it doesn't brand you a failure. Keep your list relatively short. Set too many goals and it might be a wee bit overwhelming. You're likely to do better with a shorter list.

clean and Organize

The beginning of a new year is also a perfect time to do some cleaning and organizing in your writing world. Start with your writing space. I see a few stacks in mine that I need to go through. It's save or toss time. Next, consider the files in your computer. You know there are things you've saved for a long time that no longer have any relevance. Get rid of them! 

Records

What about the records you keep of your submissions, rejections, acceptances and pay amounts? Now is the time to go through all from 2017. Take a good look. What kinds of things did you submit? With what types of writing were you the most successful? Maybe that's an area that you might concentrate on in 2018. 

New Projects List

As we go about our everyday chores, snippets of what we'd like to write someday flit through our minds. If you've been vigilant about jotting them down in a small notebook, now is the time to expand on those notes and make a list of what you'd like to write this year.

Conferences

Are there conferences that you attend regularly? Check to see what the dates will be this year and start planning now. Set aside a little money each month to pay the fee when the time comes. Write the dates on your calendar and work other things around them.

May we all have fewer rejections this year. To do that, we need to put forth our very best writing. Maybe that should be Goal #1 for 2018.